2Gig appears to be the first to offer local DVR on self-contained security panels -- up to 1TB via built-in SATA drive. Service complements cloud-based solution from Alarm.com.

2Gig, which sells more than 300,000 self-contained security panels per year, is adding a unique feature to its Go!Control systems: built-in DVR capabilities. The company demonstrated the solution during the International Security Conference (ISC West 2012) in Las Vegas.

A self-contained security panel is one that includes the security processor, keypad/interface, sensor hub, back-up battery and (usually) built-in GSM module for cellular communications with the central station. Normally, all that is needed is a power source.

In addition, most self-contained panels today also include home automation capabilities, with built-in Z-Wave or ZigBee modules. 2Gig was arguably the pioneer of this configuration.

For its automation capabilities, 2Gig relies on Alarm.com to process commands in the cloud. Alarm.com takes information from the security panel, the automation devices and the surveillance cameras, and shoots them out in a user-friendly, unified interface available from the panel itself or virtually any mobile device.

The problem is: If the Internet goes down at the user’s premises, the cameras won’t record. Several home systems integrators and security dealers have told CE Pro that this is the biggest drawback of IP-enabled surveillance systems (like 2Gig and others) that are totally reliant on the cloud.

“This is going to change the way things are done,” says 2Gig co-founder Lance Dean at ISC West 2012.

Now, with its on-board DVR, the 2Gig panels can benefit from both local and cloud-enabled video recording.

“This is going to change the way things are done,” says 2Gig co-founder Lance Dean.

Go!2.0

The new DVR feature is part of the forthcoming Go!Control 2.0 platform, which “will be an attractive step-up residential and small commercial offering,” Dean says.

All 2.0 panels will be “DVR-ready,” says 2Gig CTO Jeremy Warren.

Two options are available: Secure Digital High-Capacity (SDHC) cards and SATA hard drives. SDHC is limited to 32GB, which translates into approximately four camera-days of HD video (720p 15 fps).

Otherwise, panels support standard 2.5-inch (laptop) SATA hard drives, which currently are shipping in sizes of up to 1 TB. That gets you about 120 camera-days of HD video, according to Warren.

He adds, “Since the Go!2.0 panel supports up to four of our HD video cameras, that means you could store a month of 24x7 HD video, and larger drives will certainly be available soon.”

Surprisingly, the new feature adds barely any real estate to the current panel’s footprint.

The system can be configured to record continuously for 24 hours a day, or upon specified events.

The new DVR-enabled panels currently are in beta testing and the company expects to launch the product in Q4 of this year.

The products will carry a premium, depending on the amount of storage added for DVR functionality.

Smarter Thermostats, Too

In other 2Gig news, the company’s new thermostat has a better radio and enhanced processing that will double the range and the battery life of the company’s current thermostat, according to Dean.

Of course, 2Gig also benefits from new smart-thermostat capabilities offered by its partner Alarm.com. In February, the service provider announced a new cloud-based (SaaS) “Smart Schedule” service that learns activity patterns based on security sensors, and adjusts thermostats automatically for energy efficiency.

Local DVR complements cloud-based service from Alarm.com, which had a large presence in the 2Gig booth,

About the Author

Julie Jacobson, recipient of the 2014 CEA TechHome Leadership Award, is co-founder of EH Publishing, producer of CE Pro, Electronic House, Commercial Integrator, Security Sales and other leading technology publications. She currently spends most of her time writing for CE Pro in the areas of home automation, security, networked A/V and the business of home systems integration. Julie majored in Economics at the University of Michigan, spent a year abroad at Cambridge University, earned an MBA from the University of Texas at Austin, and has never taken a journalism class in her life. She's a washed-up Ultimate Frisbee player currently residing in Carlsbad, Calif. Email Julie at [email protected]